The Tibetan Book of Yoga
Ancient Buddhist Teachings on the Philosophy and Practice of Yoga

Book Review by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

Geshe Michael Roach has been a teacher of Buddhism since 1981. This fully ordained monk is the author of The Diamond Cutter. He wrote this volume during a three-year retreat in the Arizona desert. Here Roach introduces readers to Tibetan Heart Yoga, which belongs to the Gelukpa tradition of the Dalai Lamas. This practice makes your physical heart and body strong while also opening your heart through tong-len, which means "giving and taking." The idea is to concentrate on your breath and to send out love, peace, and happiness to others.

A half-hour program of Heart Yoga can be used in conjunction with more common yoga practices. Ten exercises are presented with instructions for each pose and commentary on their significance. Roach gives helpful overviews of stretching and straightening the inner channels, calming the mind, and reaching out to others. In one of the many inspiring quotations used to spice up the proceedings, we read: "You cannot enter the door of yoga without kindness and compassion for others." (Changkya Who Swam in the Diamond Sea ). This is a terrific mind-body resource.